A lucky break for a man who may be the world's worst chemist. I mean, trying to invent something and not writing down what he was trying? He could've killed himself with that nitric acid. Crazy bastard.

On the other hand, professional inventors rarely if ever get rich from their inventions, because the company (3M, and Postit notes being a big example) owns the invention, and the inventor gets no recognition or any extra pay for it.